Long Island Unemployment Rate Continues to Drop

Long Island’s unemployment rate fell by nearly 2 percentage points in November, a steep decline from the same time last year when Sandy stalled projects and put many out of work, officials said.

South Shore communities hit hardest by the storm experienced even more dramatic drops in their respective unemployment rates, such as Long Beach (5.4 percent from 10.5 percent) and Freeport (6.2 percent from 9.3 percent), according to the New York State Department of Labor.

The latest data also reflects “strong seasonal hiring,” said Shital Patel, a labor market analyst for the state labor department.

Both Nassau and Suffolk counties saw unemployment rates continue to fall. Nassau, which had an unemployment rate of 7 percent last November, came in at 5.1 percent. Suffolk went from 7.1 to 5.6 percent.

New York State ended November at 6.9 percent, slightly higher than the nation’s overall rate of 6.6 percent.

The latest unemployment report comes on the heels of last week’s private sector jobs report which also showed positive gains in employment. LI captured its 42nd consecutive month of positive job gains in November and added 31,900 more private sector jobs compared to the same time last year.

Rashed Mian has been covering local news for the Long Island Press since 2011. He graduated from Hofstra University in 2010 where he studied print journalism. Rashed, the staff's multimedia reporter, covers daily news for the web, shoots/edits feature videos and writes about civil liberties. He loves Afghan food and sports. Rashed is also a caffeine freak. Email: rmian@longislandpress.com. Twitter: rashedmian